The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1887-01-18
APPALLING LOSSES.
WHY THE POTOMAC FORCES FOUGHT
LESS sTONCLY IN JUNE, 1864.

Official Figures of the Losses-GeneraIs
Killed and Wounded on Both Sides
A Private Soldier States a Problem
A Contrast.
At the time, in the latter part of June,
1864, it was freely charged by the gener-
ais employed in the Army of the Potomac
that that army was not fighting as
stanchly at Petersburg as it had fought
In the Wilderness or at Spottsylvania.
The charge was true. We had seen regi-
ments melt before the heat of the Confed-
crate battie-fire, until a scant hundred
men fell into line when the drum tapped.
We had seen brigades fall into battle line
300 muskets strong. Once at Cold Har-
Dor two regiments were sent to support
my battery. I smiled sorrowfully at the
scanty array. One hundred and twenty
muskets, sixty files, were all that were
left of two Delaware regiments. We had
seen heavy artillery regiments, which
joined Us at Spottsylvania 1,500, 1,600
LOO men strong fall into line before
Petersburg, 400, 500, 600 men strong, and
to come back from the assault delivered
on June 49, 1864, still weaker. The en-
listed men who passed unframed through
the frightful carnage judged the losses
that had occurred in regiments with
which we were familiar.
To the official figures During May,
1864, which period of time includes the
prolonged study of the Confederate en-
trenchments at North Anna, the
Army of the Potomac lost 395
officers killed, 1,343 wounded, and
211 missing Five or six general Off
GERS were killed and ten or twelve wounded
IT,, - h
$50 enlisted men were killed, 81, 140
wounded, and 1899 were missing. From
May 81 to Oct. %, the day on which the
campaign practically ended, there were
in the Potomac army 401 officers killed,
1 ,453 wounded, and 564 missing during
the same time 4, 5S7 enlisted men were
killed. "a, 40 were wounded, and 15,S44
were missing. The aggregate losses after
the figh ting at North Anna were 46, 989 en-
listed men and officers.
GENERALS KILLED AND WOUNDED.
And in this appalling number, stricken
when the army was well nigh d1scour-
aged, and when the soldiers needed, If
ever battle-worn troops did need, the
presence of their generals, and needed to
be reused to enthusiasm and valor by gal
liant leaders, the enlisted men never heard
of but one general officer being killed. He
was Brig. Gen. Burnham. They heard of
one or two other generals being wounded,
and of two being captured During the
same time-that is, after the battle OF
North Anna-we learned that the Confed-
crate Gems. Doles, Chambliss, Gherardie,
Donovan and Gregg had been killed, and
many of their generals wounded. And it
must be remembered that the Confeder-
ate general was behind sheltering earth
works with their troops. The execution
of their duty made it essential that they
should be there. Our losses of general
officers, if they had fearlessly performed
their duty, would have been at least four
| times as heavy as those of the Confeder-
ates. Instead of one Union generals be-
| ing killed to IA, 900 enlisted men stricken
! in battle, there should have been at least
twenty OF them killed and eighty OF them
wounded, and there would have been if
| they had done their duty as the Coufeder-
ate generals did theirs.
Let me go west. and to the battle of
/ Franklyn to illustrate my meaning. On
! the afternoon of Nov. 80, 1864, the COnfed-
crate generals led their veteran infantry
to the assault against the hastily con-
| structed union earthwOrkS, thrown up
across a broad neck of land formed by q
bend in the Harpeth river, in Tennessee.
| The attack began at p. M. 1t was dark
at D. IN. The fight lasted until about 10
D. m Say six hours of fighting, four of
which was performed after dark, when it
was impossible for infantry to select gen
erals as targets, or to shoot accurately.
| The Confederates lost about 5000 enlisted
men in this action. The problem for the
heroes of magazine fiction to solve is a
simple one in proportion. They had bet
ter figure it out for themselves. 1t is
this:
THE PROBLEM STATED.